A process-based social-ecological systems framework for studying the effects of human recreation on wildlife

1. Understanding the effects of human recreation on wildlife is fundamental for effective management and coexistence, where natural landscapes increasingly serve a dual purpose: protecting biodiversity while providing recreational opportunities.

2. Social-ecological systems frameworks, which acknowledge the reciprocal links between people and nature, have been proposed as a lens through which to study recreation impacts on ecological systems. However, existing frameworks typically lack specific links between human behaviour and wildlife responses, limiting their current value to recreation ecology and protected area management.

3. Here, we integrate ideas from ecological habitat selection and social-ecological systems thinking to frame the effects of recreation on wildlife. This framework links the nested structure of human decision-making (e.g. where, when and how people recreate) with the hierarchical process of wildlife habitat selection (i.e. how animals decide where to live and move) to help us understand the specific ways in which recreation affects wildlife.

4. Linking direct and indirect pathways across these hierarchies encourages a process-based understanding of when and how specific recreation behaviours can lead to specific ecological effects, and how these could feed back into human perceptions, policy, and land use. We illustrate the framework using a case study from our experiences in recreation management and Western Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) conservation in Scotland and discuss wider applications to natural landscapes globally.

5. This framing helps managers identify which recreational behaviours may affect wildlife at which spatial scales, and where interventions are therefore most effective. Rather than relying on blanket exclusions of recreationists, the framework highlights opportunities for adaptive and scale-aware responses that address specific ecological responses while maintaining public access to natural spaces.